'National Night Out' offers keiki safety awareness

Kids team up with military police from the 8th Military Police Brigade, 8th Theater Sustainment Command, and USAG-HI's DES to learn strategies about how to protect the local community during National Night Out at the Kalakaua Community Center, Aug. 7.

Kids team up with military police from the 8th Military Police Brigade, 8th Theater Sustainment Command, and USAG-HI's DES to learn strategies about how to protect the local community during National Night Out at the Kalakaua Community Center, Aug. 7.

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SCHOFIELD BARRACKS, Hawaii -- More than 500 keiki and their families teamed up with police, firefighters and Scruff McGruff the Crime Dog to build a better community during National Night Out in the Kalakaua community, here, Aug. 7.

National Night Out, hosted throughout the U.S. on the first Tuesday in August, focuses on displays, demonstrations and face-to-face interaction to show keiki that police, firefighters and paramedics in their neighborhoods are on their side.

"(National Night Out) is about everything and anything that has to do about safety," said Sheryl Ferido, event coordinator and marketing manager, Island Palm Communities. "The event is about the kids getting familiar with firemen, MPs and working dogs, so they can become familiar with them outside of an emergency situation."

National Night Out is a necessary event, said Patrick Rodrigues, community relations officer, Directorate of Emergency Services, U.S. Army Garrison-Hawaii.

"One of the major misconceptions about military police is that they don't care, that they aren't concerned with the community's well-being," Rodrigues said. "When we go out and respond to calls, there's an urgency we feel to make sure the community stays safe."

"We're an extension of their family. We're like their mother or father; we're here to protect," said Pukaua Manners, community relations officer, DES.

During the event, keiki high-fived with Scruff McGruff, sat in the driver's seat of a patrol car and worked their way toward becoming "Junior Chief" safety experts.

A Junior Chief has a responsibility to teach friends and family on how to make a better community, Ferido said.

"Being safe is a community effort," Ferido added. "Know your surroundings and know where you can get help."

Crime fighting resources

USAG-HI, along with DA, offers a variety of ways to report and to fight crime. The following list of contacts are designed to empower you and your family: